Questions for Written Answer

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what they estimate is the average cost of a media question to a government department.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: This information is not collated.

Abortion

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, following the Department of Health's recent procedural change in abortion data collection, they plan to collect information on the amount of income generated by abortion providers.

Earl Howe: The department has no plans to collect information relating to the income generated by abortion providers over and above their existing statutory responsibilities, for example through the Charity Commission.

Agriculture: Schmallenberg Virus

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to find a cure for the Schmallenberg virus.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: Defra is funding research into finding out more about this virus that will help in understanding how best it can be managed.
	Currently, there is no treatment or preventative vaccine for Schmallenberg virus (SBV) available. However, laboratories and vaccine manufacturers in the EU are considering the possibility of developing an effective vaccine in the future. Defra is supporting research and diagnostic test development at the UK and international level to help inform whether developing potential vaccine candidates would be worth while. To this end, we are collaborating fully with our international colleagues, involving research laboratories and commercial companies. While there is no information at this stage about the progress of vaccine development, we understand some commercial companies are in the early stages of development.

Agriculture: Schmallenberg Virus

Lord Glentoran: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was given early warning of the Schmallenberg virus by the European Commission; and whether British farmers were provided with any assistance in preparing for the virus.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: A team of experts from Defra and the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) constantly monitors diseases in the UK and across the world. As a result, we are well informed of the threat of both emerging and spreading diseases.
	In autumn 2011 there were indications of an unidentified syndrome in the Netherlands causing milk drop, fever and diarrhoea in cattle.
	Key industry representatives were alerted to the issue and asked to raise awareness and increase vigilance for signs of similar disease in the UK.
	Once the virus had been characterised as Schmallenberg virus and further cases were emerging in Europe, letters were sent out to key stakeholders and information made widely available through the industry press.
	Stakeholders across the UK are being kept informed of developments. Defra's and AHVLA's animal diseases web pages are being updated regularly as new information emerges from Europe.
	Guidance has been provided by the Commission on trade and funding for collaborative research and further advice and information for vets and farmers will also be provided through the AHVLA.

Association of Chief Police Officers

Lord Willis of Knaresborough: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the total budget for the operation of the Association of Chief Police Officers; who provides the funding; and how expenditure is audited.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total expenditure on the employment of consultants by the Association of Chief Police Officers in each of the past three years.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the procurement protocols for the Association of Chief Police Officers; and who approved them.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government, in each case where consultants were employed by the Association of Chief Police Officers, whether the relevant procurement protocols were adhered to; and whether each contract was advertised for open tender.

Lord Henley: The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) is a private limited company and is not owned or controlled by the Home Office. As such, this information is not held by the department.

Civil Service

Lord Liddle: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the size of the Senior Civil Service, and how many civil servants were employed, in each year from 1979 to 2010 inclusive.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The Cabinet Office has collected information on the number of senior civil servants on a headcount basis since the creation of the Senior Civil Service in April 1996 when around 3,050 senior staff were brought together into a centrally managed single service-wide group. Time series data for Senior Civil Service headcount for the period 1996 to 2010 has therefore been provided in the table below, along with overall full-time equivalent Civil Service employment for the period 1979 to 2010.
	
		
			 Civil Service and Senior Civil Service Employment 1979 to 2010 
			 Year Total Civil Service employment Senior Civil Service employment 
			 1979 733,000 n/a 
			 1980 708,000 n/a 
			 1981 695,000 n/a 
			 1982 675,000 n/a 
			 1983 653,000 n/a 
			 1984 633,000 n/a 
			 1985 620,000 n/a 
			 1986 596,000 n/a 
			 1987 599,000 n/a 
			 1988 583,000 n/a 
			 1989 572,000 n/a 
			 1990 562,000 n/a 
			 1991 576,000 n/a 
			 1992 591,000 n/a 
			 1993 582,000 n/a 
			 1994 558,000 n/a 
			 1995 534,000 n/a 
			 1996 517,000 3,050 
			 1997 495,000 2,988 
			 1998 484,000 2,973 
			 1999 482,000 2,963 
			 2000 492,000 3,108 
			 2001 497,000 3,331 
			 2002 511,000 3,507 
			 2003 529,000 3,700 
			 2004 538,000 3,893 
			 2005 537,000 3,906 
			 2006 524,000 4,031 
			 2007 505,000 4,072 
			 2008 489,000 4,212 
			 2009 493,000 4,271 
			 2010 487,000 4,353 
		
	
	Source: Civil Service 1991 to 2010: Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey. ONS (FTE basis)
	Civil Service 1979 to 1990: Civil Service Statistics. ONS (FTE basis)
	SCS 1996 to 2010: SCS Database Cabinet Office (Headcount basis)
	Notes: n/a-data not available as the Senior Civil Service was created as a centrally managed single service-wide group in 1996.

Civil Service: Strategy

Lord Tebbit: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have determined the terms of reference of their review of the Strategy for the Civil Service 2008-13.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: I refer my noble friend to the reply I gave him on Monday 27 February 2012 (Official Report, Column WA261).

Coroner Service

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they are making in appointing a chief coroner.

Lord McNally: Under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 it is for the Lord Chief Justice to appoint the chief coroner, in consultation with the Lord Chancellor. The Ministry of Justice is in detailed discussions with the Judicial Office regarding the appointment and terms of the office of chief coroner and we will make an announcement as soon as possible.

Education: Special Educational Needs and Disability

Lord Bradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan to publish their White Paper on special educational needs and disability.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether their proposed White Paper on special educational needs and disability will include measures to improve testing in schools for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The Government will publish shortly a report on the Green Paper, Support and Aspiration: A New Approach to Special Educational Needs and Disability,setting out progress to date and next steps and a summary of the consultation responses. We remain committed to achieving the ambitious programme set out in the Green Paper and will place the document in the Library of the House when it is published.

Energy: Green Deal

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to the assessment in the Europe Economics Report The Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation that the energy company obligation neutral approach would allow the Government's target of 1.95 Mt CO2 saved to be reached in 2019.

Lord Marland: DECC is currently carefully reviewing the responses to the Green Deal and energy company obligation consultation.
	Our final impact assessment, to be published alongside the government response to the consultation, will contain our analysis and assumptions, including those relating to the design of the energy company obligation and the carbon savings it will achieve.

Energy: Green Deal

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the assessment in the Europe Economics Report The Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation that between 6 million and 9 million homes in the United Kingdom can still benefit from full loft insulation; that there are between 1.4 million and 3.6 million untreated homes with easy to fill cavity walls; and that it is possible to phase in the Energy Company Obligation in a way which encourages take-up of loft insulation and cavity insulation without increasing the overall costs already assumed.

Lord Marland: DECC has worked closely with the insulation industry to gain a detailed understanding of the remaining potential in the sector, including reviewing the Europe Economics report and other evidence received since our draft impact assessment was published in November 2011.
	Our final impact assessment, to be published alongside the government response to the consultation, will contain our analysis and assumptions, including those relating to the scope of the energy company obligation and the number of cavity walls and lofts that still need to be treated.

Energy: Green Deal

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the demand for solid wall insulation under the Green Deal; and what plans they have to ensure that the training and accreditation of installers of loft and cavity wall insulation will be in place to meet demand.

Lord Marland: DECC has worked closely with the insulation industry to gain a detailed understanding of the sector's capacity to increase solid wall installation rates in a safe and sustainable way.
	DECC has put in place an accreditation framework relating to solid wall insulation to assure the quality of installations. The British Standards Institute has already published a publically available specification which covers installation standards relating to each of the measures eligible for Green Deal finance.
	Our final impact assessment, to be published alongside the Government's response to the consultation, will contain estimates of annual solid wall insulation volumes.
	In addition, the department has made available £2 million to support the training and up-skilling of solid wall installers.

Energy: Green Deal

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the assessment in the Europe Economics Report The Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation that the industry could realistically install solid wall insulation in 60,000 homes in the first year of the Green Deal, with subsequent increases in capacity of around 25 per cent annually.

Lord Marland: DECC has worked closely with the insulation industry to gain a detailed understanding of the sector's capacity to increase solid wall installation rates in a safe and sustainable way, including reviewing the Europe Economics report.
	Our final impact assessment, to be published alongside the government response to the consultation, will contain our analysis and assumptions.

Energy: Green Deal

Lord Jenkin of Roding: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the introduction of a transition period for the change from loft and cavity wall insulation to solid wall insulation under the Green Deal.

Lord Marland: The Government's consultation on Green Deal and the ECO noted that Green Deal finance should generally enable householders to invest in loft and cavity wall insulation at no up-front cost. The energy company obligation (ECO) could leverage private sector capital and help develop the market for measures such as solid wall insulation, where the Green Deal golden rule does not apply (ie, where energy bill savings from energy efficiency measures do not fully repay the cost of the measure).
	We are currently considering responses to the public consultation on the design of the ECO and the Green Deal, and we will issue a formal consultation response, including on how we will manage the transition period, later in the spring.

Energy: Green Deal

Lord Jenkin of Roding: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the willingness of private householders to take up solid wall insulation in sufficient numbers to meet the targets set out in the impact assessment to the Green Deal and energy company obligation consultation.

Lord Marland: DECC has primarily drawn on two types of evidence to understand the willingness of private households to take up solid wall insulation: direct market research1 in order to understanding what consumers say they would take up in the context of a Green Deal, and findings from pilots and research projects such as the Sutton pilot results and evaluation report, published in 20112. DECC has then developed an econometric model which enables analysis of the levels of take-up based on the amount of ECO finding, alongside the financial offering and supply-side constraints. As such, the numbers in the published impact assessment represent DECC's view of the likely take-up of solid wall installation.
	1 www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/consultation/green-deal/3504-green-deal-consumer-research-data-table.pdf
	2 www.bioregional.com/files/publications/Helping-to-inform-the-Green-Deal-green-shoots-from-Pay-As-You-Save.pdf

Energy: Green Deal

Lord Jenkin of Roding: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the timescales to which local government will be subject in any procurement of solid wall insulation under the Green Deal.

Lord Marland: Local authorities procuring solid wall insulation projects under the Green Deal will be subject to existing national and European procurement rules that apply to such activity.
	A number of local authorities are currently considering their options for delivering the Green Deal. For example, Birmingham City Council is currently procuring a Green Deal delivery partner; given the scale of the contract being tendered this is subject to European procurement rules.

Energy: Green Deal

Lord Jenkin of Roding: To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures will be included in the "time limited introductory offer" of £200 million announced by the Minister for Climate Change on 20 February (HC Deb, col 477W), to support the introduction of the Green Deal.

Lord Marland: We are currently considering which measures will be included in the Green Deal introductory scheme and will provide further details later in the year.

Energy: Wind Farms

The Duke of Montrose: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Marland on 6 March (WA 403), what is their estimate of the power generated by wind farms in each region of the United Kingdom.

Lord Marland: The following table shows the amount of electricity generated by wind in each region in 2010, the latest year for which this information is available.
	
		
			 Region Generation of electricity from wind1 (GWh) 
			 England 3,657.6 
			 East Midlands 756.1 
			 East of England 838.7 
			 North East 235.1 
			 North West 787.8 
			 London 4.9 
			 South East 750.4 
			 South West 92.9 
			 West Midlands 0.7 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 191.0 
			 Wales 999.4 
			 Scotland 4,861.1 
			 Northern Ireland 641.5 
		
	
	1 In total, around 2GWh of generation from shoreline wave and tidal is included in the data.

Extremism

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government for what actions, including actions which were not, or were not intended to be, criminal, a person would be classified a "domestic extremist" and so qualify to appear on the police database of domestic extremists.

Lord Henley: There is no legal definition of domestic extremism in the UK. Police databases, including those containing data on domestic extremism, are maintained in compliance with the statutory Code of Practice on the Management of Police Information. This provides a framework for the police to collect information for policing purposes, which are described as protecting life and property, preserving order, preventing the commission of offences, bringing offenders to justice, or any duty or responsibility of the police arising from common or statute law. This applies to protestors or a person alleged to be a domestic extremist who had not committed any criminal act.

Firefighters

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the breakdown by age and gender of serving front-line firefighters in each county in England and Wales.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the age profile of firefighters in England and Wales.

Baroness Hanham: The department holds fire and rescue service staff numbers for each fire and rescue service in England. This includes totals by age and by gender for all wholetime and retained firefighters. The latest data relate to 31 March 2011.
	A copy of this information has been deposited in the Library of the House.

Government Departments: Circulars

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what departmental circulars the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) has issued in the last 12 months, and (2) plans to issue in the next 12 months; and what issues those documents cover.

Baroness Wilcox: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not produce any regular circulars. We do however put information about policy updates on our website (including public consultations) and send a weekly bulletin newsletter to around 2,500 stakeholders who have subscribed online.
	Our list of publications can be seen at http://www.bis.gov.uk/publications and access to the BIS stakeholder bulletin and blogs is through http://www.bis.gov.uk/site/connect

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Liddle: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many staff (civil servants, special advisers, secondees or other staff) were employed in (1) the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit, (2) the Performance and Innovation Unit, (3) the Policy Unit, (4) the Strategy Unit and (5) the Social Exclusion Unit, for each year since 1997.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The table below sets out headcount for each unit requested for each full financial year from 1997-98 to 2010-11.
	
		
			 Headcount 31/03/1998 31/03/1999 31/03/2000 31/03/2001 31/03/2002 31/03/2003 31/03/2004 
			 Performance & Innovation Unit 4 21 34 38 60 0 0 
			 PM's Delivery Unit 0 0 0 0 29 39 47 
			 PM's Policy Unit 17 23 30 27 31 27 33 
			 Social Exclusion Taskforce 4 3 4 23 20 3 1 
			 Strategy Unit 0 0 0 0 18 34 25 
		
	
	
		
			 Headcount 31/03/2005 31/03/2006 31/03/2007 31/03/2008 31/03/2009 31/03/2010 31/03/2011 
			 Performance & Innovation Unit 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 PM's Delivery Unit 49 61 72 4 0 0 0 
			 PM's Policy Unit 28 10 5 19 17 20 28 
			 Social Exclusion Taskforce 0 0 24 25 31 26 0 
			 Strategy Unit 33 51 44 73 81 43 45 
		
	
	Fluctuations in headcount within individual units reflect the nature of the work carried out and the speed at which change is required to meet changing priorities.
	The Social Exclusion Taskforce was transferred to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister during 2003-06, before returning to the Cabinet Office. During 2010-11 the task force was wound down and the work was subsumed by the Office for Civil Society.

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Tebbit: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 27 February (WA 260-1), when they expect the findings of the review of Promoting Equality, Valuing Diversity-A Strategy for the Civil Service 2008-13 to be made public.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: In the next few months.

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 13 December 2011 (WA 257-8), how many members of the staff of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor bodies have been convicted of criminal offences in connection with their official activities over the past seven years; and, in each case, what was the name of the offender, the date, and the nature of the offence and the sentence received.

Lord Henley: The detail requested was set out in my reply of 13 December 2011. In addition to this there have been the following convictions:
	
		
			 Name Charges Conviction date Sentence 
			 Samuel SHOYEJU Misconduct in public office 10 November 2011 7 years 
			 Radhakrishnan KITTOOR RAMMAKRISHNAN Misconduct in public office and money-laundering 05 December 2011 8 years 
			 Wayne DAVIS Misconduct in public office 07 December 2011 2 years nine months 
			 Martin BARKER False Accounting 21 December 2011 6 months suspended

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 27 February (WA 261), whether they will ascertain how many civil servants are paid as departmental trade union side staff in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Department for Work and Pensions, the Ministry of Justice, and HM Revenue and Customs.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: I refer the noble Lord to the reply I gave him on 27 February 2012 (Official Report, column WA261).

Government Departments: Staff

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many staff working in the Department of Energy and Climate Change are seconded from outside companies and organisations; from which companies and organisations they are seconded; and how many are seconded from each such company or organisation.

Lord Marland: As of 29 February 2012, there were 31 people working in the Department of Energy and Climate Change who were seconded from outside companies and organisations. The table below shows which companies or organisations they are from and how many are seconded from each such company or organisation.
	
		
			 Companies or Organisations Number of people 
			 Bright Futures NZ Limited 1 
			 Cambridge University 1 
			 Carbon Trust 7 
			 Committee on Climate Change 1 
			 ConocoPhillips (UK) Ltd 1 
			 Deloitte LLP 1 
			 Energus 1 
			 Energy People Ltd 1 
			 Environment Agency 2 
			 KPMG LLP 1 
			 Living With Environmental Change (Fellowship Placement) 1 
			 London Development Agency 1 
			 Met Office 1 
			 Mount Wellington Mine Ltd 1 
			 National Audit Office 1 
			 National Grid 2 
			 Nuclear Decommissioning Authority 1 
			 Pinsent Mason LLP 2 
			 RET-Australia 1 
			 Rolls-Royce 2 
			 UK Petroleum Industry Association 1 
			 Total 31

Government: Cars

Lord Jopling: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Statement by Earl Attlee on 27 February (WS 86), which Ministers will have an official car allocated permanently; how many Ministers will be expected to travel using public transport to, from or between their London homes, their departments, and the Palace of Westminster; and what arrangements they have made for similar journeys for the transport of official papers.

Earl Attlee: Under the new arrangements announced in the Written Ministerial Statement of 27 February, Ministers will no longer have a dedicated or allocated car from the Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA). Instead the GCDA will provide departments with pool car(s) and driver service that will meet the official car needs of their respective Ministers.
	In certain circumstances Ministers will not need to travel in an official car but will be expected to use public transport or make their own arrangements in line with the Ministerial Code.

Healthcare: Costs

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 10 February (WA 117), whether presentation of a Europe-wide entitlement document is necessary before citizens of other European Economic Area (EEA) countries can obtain healthcare in the United Kingdom; and how many individuals doing so have been identified from each relevant EEA country from which such healthcare costs can be reclaimed in each of the past five years.

Earl Howe: Citizens of other European Economic Area countries are expected to present an entitlement document if the holder requires medical treatment free of charge, on the basis that the United Kingdom can claim reimbursement from that individual's member state.
	No such documentation is required if the individual is prepared to pay for treatment, or, for the individual to register with a general practitioner in the UK. In addition, under existing bilateral arrangements, entitlement documents are not exchanged between the United Kingdom and Ireland.
	The following table shows the number of reclaimable treatments provided to individuals from each member state, since the introduction of an internet-based portal for National Health Service staff to report such treatments in October 2009:
	
		
			 Emergency treatment using European Health Insurance Card: 
			 Country Total treatments Total cost 
			 Austria 106 £134,251.45 
			 Belgium 97 £206,605.18 
			 Bulgaria 168 £277,284.36 
			 Czech Republic 149 £207,572.78 
			 Denmark 158 £313,883.64 
			 Estonia 25 £46,735.74 
			 Finland 82 £112,681.32 
			 France 791 £1,433,778.42 
			 Germany 862 £1,267,220.15 
			 Greece 164 £375,012.72 
			 Hungary 181 £288,123.47 
			 Iceland 27 £39,149.57 
			 Ireland 374 £876,062.99 
			 Italy 981 £1,275,386.93 
			 Latvia 94 £148,621.95 
			 Liechtenstein 2 £3,755.27 
			 Lithuania 103 £123,966.46 
			 Luxembourg 14 £4,609.89 
			 Malta 49 £90,608.68 
			 Norway 230 £378,718.03 
			 Poland 731 £1,583,473.25 
			 Portugal 227 £542,109.41 
			 Romania 216 £516,823.50 
			 Slovakia 113 £115,876.11 
			 Slovenia 11 £11,422.95 
			 Spain 707 £1,563,747.48 
			 Sweden 333 £568,881.35 
			 Switzerland 178 £303,284.09 
			 The Netherlands 346 £611,277.61 
			 The Rep of Cyprus 141 £268,389.47 
			 Total 7660 £13,689,314.22 
		
	
	
		
			 Planned Treatment; treatment carried out in the UK at the cost of other member states: 
			 Country Total treatments Total cost 
			 Austria 10 £70,799.78 
			 Belgium 43 £99,254.31 
			 Czech Republic 2 £1,330.07 
			 Denmark 43 £447,948.72 
			 Estonia 10 £106,618.62 
			 Finland 2 £211,806.00 
			 France 20 £70,120.48 
			 Germany 37 £351,252.83 
			 Greece 312 £1,329,001.15 
			 Hungary 4 £71,190.27 
			 Iceland 1 £1,721.66 
			 Ireland 2550 £16,009,531.35 
			 Italy 230 £1,041,057.14 
			 Latvia 35 £98,667.31 
			 Lithuania 10 £27,017.92 
			 Luxembourg 25 £116,534.23 
			 Malta 1967 £6,238,790.05 
			 Poland 115 £256,343.36 
			 Portugal 37 £342,435.03 
			 Romania 10 £36,140.10 
			 Slovakia 1 £1,732.00 
			 Slovenia 12 £89,213.23 
			 Spain 59 £327,501.02 
			 Sweden 31 £223,678.00 
			 The Netherlands 30 £77,365.01 
			 The Rep of Cyprus 26 £58,934.30 
			 Total 5622 £27,705,983.94

Infanticide

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the publication in a recent edition of the Journal of Medical Ethics of an article arguing that killing a newborn should be permissible in all the cases where abortion is permissible, what consideration they have given to the implications of its publication in the United Kingdom; and what steps they are taking to ensure that infanticide is not practised in the United Kingdom.

Earl Howe: The law is clear that a person who kills a child commits an offence and will be charged with murder, manslaughter or infanticide as appropriate. There are no plans to review the law.

Jewellery Industry

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the prospects for the United Kingdom jewellery industry.

Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint: Sales of precious metal jewellery have been affected by the high price of gold, and the industry's best prospects in the UK and internationally are for products that fit the luxury goods market, which continues to grow worldwide. UK Trade & Investment supports the industry in overseas markets, through funding for a designer jewellery showcase in Beijing in November 2011 and at trade fairs in Hong Kong, the United States, Germany and Switzerland.

Migration

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the report of January 2012 by the Migrant Advisory Committee analysis of the impacts of migration.

Lord Henley: Her Majesty's Government are considering the Migration Advisory Committee report. Discussions are currently taking place across government with the aim of agreeing how best to reflect the recommendations in future migration policy impact assessments.

North Korea

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with North Korean refugees and exiles in the United Kingdom about their experience of the situation in North Korea, and any requirements they may have for training, development and capacity-building while they are in the United Kingdom.

Baroness Northover: The UK Government have not had any discussions with North Korean refugees and exiles based in the UK. The Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office met Shin Dong-Hyuk, a North Korean activist now living in South Korea, when Mr Shin visited the UK in October 2011.

North Korea

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what efforts they are making to encourage the Government of North Korea to invite the United Nations special rapporteur on the right to food to visit the country.

Baroness Northover: Her Majesty's Government have not raised the UN special rapporteur on the right to food with North Korea. However, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in North Korea has addressed the issue of chronic malnutrition there and Her Majesty's Government have long asked that he be given access to North Korea.

North Korea

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the recommendation by the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Co-ordinator that the international community should provide more financial support and creative solutions to overcome food shortages in North Korea.

Baroness Northover: We believe that the Department for International Development's investment in the various humanitarian organisations working in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) represents the best way for the UK to assist the people of the DPRK. We are in close contact with these humanitarian agencies and continue to monitor the situation.

North Korea

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what funding they are providing to educational initiatives in North Korea or for North Koreans in the United Kingdom; and whether they intend to increase this funding in order to strengthen educational and cultural exchange.

Baroness Northover: Through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British Council the Government have been funding English language training in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) for over 10 years. The number of benefitting universities has recently been increased, and a letter of understanding outlining the programme's objectives for the next three years was signed with the DPRK Commission of Education in June 2011.

People Trafficking

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty's Government when the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on Human Trafficking will publish reports on progress in implementing the strategy to prevent human trafficking.

Lord Henley: A report will be published in autumn 2012.

People Trafficking

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the revised terms of reference for the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on Human Trafficking.

Lord Henley: Revised terms of reference are being drafted and will be published shortly.

Police: Drones

Lord Avebury: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will conduct an assessment of the potential for the use of drones by the police, especially in relation to the cost of the equivalent use of helicopters.

Lord Henley: At present, the only unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) licensed by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for civil use in UK airspace are those weighing less than 20 kilograms. These may be used only within the line of sight and within 500 metres of the operator at altitudes up to 400 feet. The UAVs would not be suitable for most police air support purposes. Decisions about the use and relative cost-effectiveness of such vehicles are matters for chief constables and their police authorities and, from November 2012, police and crime commissioners.
	I understand that, subject to any changes in CAA licensing, the Association of Chief Police Officers intends to keep under review the potential for UAVs to contribute to the provision of police air support.

Police: Firearms

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 27 February (WA 251-2), how many firearms administration staff, managers, firearms inquiry officers, firearms licensing officers and other administrators have been employed (1) full-time, and (2) part-time, in the administration of grants, renewal and variations of firearms and shotgun certificates in each police force for the last 12 months until March 2012.

Lord Henley: Figures for the number of officers and staff employed within the function of firearms/explosives licensing within each police force in England and Wales will be available in the summer, after the publication of the statistical bulletin Police Service Strength in England and Wales, 31 March 2012.

Police: Firearms

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what reductions, if any, were made in the number of firearms administration staff, managers, firearms inquiry officers, firearms licensing officers and other administrators employed (1) full-time, and (2) part-time, in the administration of the Firearms Act 1968 in respect of grants, renewals and variations of firearms and shotgun certificates in each police force area over the past four years.

Lord Henley: The latest available information shows the full-time equivalent number of police officers and staff with the function of firearms or explosives licensing, in each police force area in England and Wales, as at 31 March in each of the years 2008 to 2011. Figures broken down into full-time and part-time staff, or by specific role within this function, are not held centrally.
	Number of police officers and police staff within the function firearms/explosives1 in each police force area in England and Wales, as at 31 March 2008 to 31 March 20112 3
	
		
			  Police Officers Police Staff 
			  31 March 2008 31 March 2009 31 March 2010 31 March 2011 31 March 2008 31 March 2009 31 March 2010 31 March 2011 
			 Avon & Somerset 0 0 0 0 32 27 18 15 
			 Bedfordshire 1 1 1 0 4 4 5 4 
			 Cambridgeshire 1 0 0 0 10 11 15 14 
			 Cheshire 1 0 0 0 13 12 13 10 
			 Cleveland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Cumbria 0 0 0 0 11 11 12 10 
			 Derbyshire 0 0 0 0 12 12 14 13 
			 Devon & Cornwall 0 0 1 0 19 17 41 22 
			 Dorset 0 0 0 0 11 11 11 10 
			 Durham 3 0 0 0 4 4 4 6 
			 Dyfed-Powys 0 0 0 0 19 18 20 19 
			 Essex 0 0 0 0 17 19 20 20 
			 Gloucestershire 8 6 6 5 3 6 6 6 
			 Greater Manchester 0 0 0 0 7 12 16 16 
			 Gwent 0 0 0 0 11 8 5 5 
			 Hampshire 0 0 0 0 19 18 19 17 
			 Hertfordshire 0 0 0 0 15 15 13 10 
			 Humberside 0 0 0 0 6 5 6 6 
			 Kent 0 0 0 0 19 18 18 19 
			 Lancashire 0 0 0 0 10 12 12 12 
			 Leicestershire 0 0 0 0 12 12 10 10 
			 Lincolnshire 1 1 1 1 15 12 19 16 
			 London, City of 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Merseyside 0 0 4 4 6 6 6 6 
			 Metropolitan Police 30 26 29 24 75 51 53 55 
			 Norfolk 0 0 0 0 17 12 21 18 
			 Northamptonshire 0 0 0 0 10 9 11 11 
			 Northumbria 0 0 0 0 1 11 15 16 
			 North Wales 2 0 1 1 7 0 13 15 
			 North Yorkshire 3 2 0 0 17 15 20 0 
			 Nottinghamshire 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 9 
			 South Wales 0 0 0 1 11 12 12 10 
			 South Yorkshire 2 2 3 2 4 4 10 9 
			 Staffordshire 0 0 0 3 8 8 12 6 
			 Suffolk 0 0 0 0 15 14 16 15 
			 Surrey 0 0 0 0 16 15 14 13 
			 Sussex 3 2 2 2 21 24 27 27 
			 Thames Valley 1 0 0 0 10 13 12 25 
			 Warwickshire 6 1 0 0 12 10 10 9 
			 West Mercia 0 0 0 0 24 23 24 22 
			 West Midlands 0 0 0 0 18 19 20 13 
			 West Yorkshire 0 2 1 1 14 17 16 17 
			 Yorkshire 0 0 6 1 10 12 10 12 
			 Sum 61 43 55 45 562 538 626 568 
		
	
	1. Firearms/explosives function is defined as staff who are predominantly employed in the processing of applications and in making inquiries for firearm and shotgun certificates, renewals, rejections, appeal and firearms surrendered to police custody, or in connection with the licensing and security of explosives and explosives stores.
	2. Staff with multiple responsibilities (or designations) are recorded under their primary role or function. The deployment of police officers is an operational matter for individual chief constables.
	3. This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between the totals in this table and totals in similar published tables.

Public Prayers

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government why, further to the answer by Baroness Hanham on 28 February (HL Deb, col. 1175), they fast-tracked the commencement of the general power of competence in the Localism Act 2011, and what are the implications of this power for the voluntary saying of prayers at the start of council meetings in England and Wales.

Baroness Hanham: The commencement of the general power of competence for principal local authorities was fast-tracked in response to the outcome of the High Court case against Bideford Town Council. The general power should provide sufficient legal powers for local authorities in England to include prayers as part of the formal business at council meetings. Subject to parliamentary process, the power should also be available to eligible parish councils from April 2012. It will be for councils to decide whether to hold prayers at the start of council meetings. We are considering if further steps need to be taken to remove legal obstacles to town hall prayers.

Union Learning Fund

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the aims and objectives of the funding they provide to the Union Learning Fund (ULF) and unionlearn; what were the priorities agreed between ULF and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills for 2011 and for 2012; what funds they have committed to be paid in 2012, and what is the total of government funding since the ULF was founded.

Baroness Wilcox: The ULF enables trades unions and union learning representatives (ULRs) to work with employers, employees and learning providers to encourage greater take-up of learning and raise skill levels in the workplace. Aims and objectives for 2011 were:
	to help provide opportunities for workers to access higher level skillsto work with employers and employees ensuring learning opportunities through government initiatives such as apprenticeshipsprovide quality information, advice and guidance and support to learnersprovide an enhanced trade union education servicemanage and administer the ULF on behalf of the department in accordance with the criteria outlined in the grant funding agreementpromote the benefits of informal adult learningdevelop the role of ULRs in raising demand for learning, from those who need help and support the most.
	Key priorities agreed between ULF and the department for 2011 were:
	engaging disadvantaged learnerstackling skills gaps and shortagesdeveloping high performing workplacesreaching out to non-unionised workplaces.
	We are in the process of agreeing priorities and funding for 2012-13.
	As referenced in Hansard [HL 4650], 2 Dec 2010, col. WA489, ULF funding has been as follows:
	
		
			 Year Amount 
			 2005 - 06 £15.4 million 
			 2006 - 07 £16.9 million 
			 2007 - 08 £18.4 million 
			 2008 - 09 £21.4 million 
			 2009 - 10 £21.5 million 
			 2010 - 11 £21.5 million 
			 2011 - 12 £21.4 million

Union Learning Fund

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the work and training with employers, employees and learning providers carried out through the Union Learning Fund to encourage a greater take-up of learning and a raising of skill levels in the workplace is available in educational and vocational institutions; and whether private sector employers are recompensed for the cost of the absence of employees when on training and learning.

Baroness Wilcox: It is the role of trade union learning representatives (ULRs) to encourage employers to sign up to learning agreements.
	The majority of the learning that takes place is conducted within the workplace but there is also work carried out in colleges from a vocational level up to a higher education level through a partnership with the Open University.
	No funding is provided to employers through the union learning fund.

Universal Credit

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government, with reference to their estimate that more than 350,000 children and around 550,000 adults will be lifted out of poverty as a result of the introduction of the universal credit, (1) how long they expect reaching those figures will take, and (2) how many children and adults they estimate will be in poverty at the date of the implementation of universal credit.

Lord Freud: (1) We expect to see the full impact of universal credit on child poverty by the time that universal credit is fully implemented by the end of 2017.
	(2) The Government have not forecast how many children or adults they expect to be in poverty at the date of the implementation of universal credit. The level of poverty is dependent on a number of factors which cannot be reliably predicted.

Watch and Clock Industry

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the prospects for the United Kingdom watch and clock industry.

Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint: Sales of precious metal jewellery have been affected by the high price of gold, and the industry's best prospects in the UK and internationally are for products that fit the luxury goods market, which continues to grow worldwide. UK Trade & Investment supports the industry in overseas markets, through funding for a designer jewellery showcase in Beijing in November 2011 and at trade fairs in Hong Kong, the United States, Germany and Switzerland.